Phillip Akkerman’s (b. 1957, Vaassen, Netherlands; lives and works in The Hague, Netherlands) practice is centered on the repeated depiction of self-portraits. Working primarily in oil and tempera on wooden panels, he produces paintings that vary widely in style, composition, and painterly approach while maintaining a consistent subject. Each work is numbered rather than titled, emphasizing an ongoing, serial process. Akkerman’s paintings draw from a range of historical styles and techniques, moving between tightly rendered and more expressive approaches. Through this sustained engagement with a single motif, he uses painting as a means of continuous variation, testing the possibilities of representation. But above all, the painter is paralyzed by the mystery of existence.
He studied at the Royal Academy of Visual Arts in The Hague from 1976 to 1978 and De Ateliers from 1979 to 1981.
Akkerman has been exhibiting at the Gallery since 2022. He has had solo exhibitions at TTHQ, Rotterdam (2024); Richard Heller Gallery, Los Angeles (2024); Emanuel von Bayer Cabinet, London, UK (2020); BravinLee programs, New York (2019); TORCH, Amsterdam (2017), among others. He has also been in group exhibitions at Grimm Gallery, New York (2024); Analog Diary, New York (2022); and The Hole, New York (2021). Akkerman’s paintings are included in the permanent collections of numerous institutions including the Centraal Museum, Utrecht; Kunstmuseum, Den Haag; Hirshhorn Museum, Washington DC; Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam; and the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam.